


Of Oni and Intuition

by Magical_Awesome_Kid



Category: Big Hero 6 (2014)
Genre: Oni!AU, Science v Magic, Supernatural - Freeform, lots of characters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-15
Updated: 2015-01-25
Packaged: 2018-03-07 16:12:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,858
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3176971
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Magical_Awesome_Kid/pseuds/Magical_Awesome_Kid
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Since the event known as the Impact hundreds of years ago, the world has been shared between beings of science and magic. Tensions are high, and the most recent slew of unlawful, if not deadly, acts are mounting in San Fransokyo. As the city plows towards the Next Oni-Ningen War, a team searches to find justice and truth.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Little Oni

            The world wasn’t always like this. Once, hundreds of years ago, there were two plains of existence – one of science and one of magic. They were balanced and divided by a source of energy dubbed the “veil” by theorists and scholars alike. On one side, humans grew to strive towards a technological future with electronic particles and moving circuits. On the other, however, creatures of every magnitude roamed, creating and casting spells and magic with barely a thought, conjuring things that could not exist into existence.

            Then, one day in Georgian Calendar Year 2015, everything seemed to unravel. Suddenly, years of mounting tremors and shifting weather patterns seemed like nothing. The world shook to it’s core as, suddenly and unexplainably, land masses moved and shifted, rose and fell, disappeared and reappeared without any rhyme or reason. The skies went dark and light and cloudy and sunny, melting ice caps and freezing deserts. Humanity was sent into a scatter as, from places they once knew, demons and spirits arose in the same panic.

            In what would be a mere blip in time, the two sides of the Veil collapsed upon one another.

            In the aftermath, fear took grips as sides questioned one another, hating what they themselves could not master nor harness. Those raised of science had little affinity for the magical arts, and those of magical origins had no sway over science. The two sides fought for the land they saw as their own, and instead of rebuilding a world scattered, it plunged into the Oni-Ningen War.

            The war, however, has long passed. A strained treaty formed over a century and a half back, the rulers of both parties drawing out lines in order to separate the two as much as possible. Humans rushed towards gleaming citadels of science whist magics scattered to the lands now run by only the most powerful of mystic lords. Tensions remain high, even as some magics and non mixed over the decades, and just one wrong move could ignite a war all over again.

            So, of course, we begin this tale in the Underground of San Fransokyo…

* * *

 

            The man laughed as he collected his earnings. While the gleaming monolith of San Fransokyo, an island city-state off the coast of what was once the United States, was rich with science, the Underground was a place of constant magic and some not-so-legal science. Now, he, Yama, had clobbered another victim within the rings of the bot fighting arena, and he had made a pretty penny, too. He preferred to get his money in other, far more lucrative manners, but this was for sure a hobby for him.

            “Who wishes to fight Little Yama?” He proclaimed to the audience, some of whom cheered loudly while others, other bot fighters, gapped and turned tail (some more literally than figuratively).  All in the Underground, whether magical or not, enjoyed a good fight, and low-level magics had no problem interacting with this level of tech. Yama shot a man, who looked demon, a chesire grin as the man instantly decapitated his bot, not even wanting to try against the Yakuza champ.

            “Uh, can I try?” A hand shot out from out in the crowd somewhere as the nearest bot fighters gapped. The other voices settled as the lines of fighters parted to reveal a young boy, not even in his later teens from the looks of it, who pulled his hand down the moment he had a little attention. He held a little black robot to his chest like a life line as he tried to disappear into his blue hoodie. His legs quivered slightly in his long kaki shorts and shoes. Yama studied the boy’s face. He was for sure young, with rosy cheeks and messy black hair, but his eyes scanned the room carefully if not a tad nervously.

            Yama came to his conclusion. The boy was a joke.

            Yama bellowed a laugh with the rest of his fellow fighters as Yuki, a rough-looking succubus, held the pot aloft as she folded her wings back in displeasure. “You got to bet to play, kid.” She snorted as she turned tail, ready to move on to the next challenger.

            “Oh, ah, I-I have mo-money.” The kid stuttered as he quickly reached into his pocket, pulling out on a shaky hand some messy bills and a few coins. However, Yama had a trained eye, and he counted at least forty units there. It wasn’t much to the man, but he was never one to turn down money.

            It would be like taking candy from a baby.

            “Let the kid play! What is your name, little boy?” Yama yelled as the boy perked ever so slightly.

            “M-my name is H-Hiro, sir.” He stuttered again as he shuffled forward. “T-thank you for playing with me!” He added as he slid down into his seat, an excited smile on his face.

            The pot lowered as Yuki unveiled the top. “Bet em up, boys.” She said as Yama easily matched Hiro’s forty along with a little extra to cover the change in the boy’s hand. Hiro slid the bills in and barely added the coins before Yuki slammed the lid shut. All around, no one bet because they knew it was going to be a slaughter. Hiro set his bot opposite of the already-placed Little Yama as the toy of a machine failed to stay up. He even pulled out this tiny remote to control the thing.

            With the dexterity of years of use, Yuki twirled an umbrella with her tail as she held the pot aloft once more. “Two bots enter, one bot leaves.” The umbrella went up. “FIGHT!”

            Before the eyes of the crowd, the little robot wobbled to its stance as Little Yama geared for battle. Little Yama rushed forward, quickly tossing the toy into the air. With one quick swish of Yama’s pudgy fingers, Little Yama sliced through the bot at its weakest points. I fell to the ground in pieces.

            “Oh, no, that was my first fight.” The boy muttered worriedly as he leaned over his destroyed robot. The crowd laughed at the pitiful performance as Yama went to collect his money. Hiro turned his head up to the competitor and, with the biggest brown eyes, asked, “Can I try again? Please? I have more money!”

            Yama paused from claiming his winnings as the boy suddenly opened his jacket – revealing a red shirt with a robot on it – as, from his shorts’ pocket withdrew a large roll of bills. “I-it’s all I’ve got, 500 units, and, I mean…” He trailed off as he looked at Yama beseechingly.

            The ante was up, and the kid was bot-less. Yama laughed at the boy, thinking how dumb the child truly was. _The kid is a good laugh._ He thought as he agreed. Who was he to turn down more money? Withdrawing from his own pocket the sum winnings of the night, he grinned back to Hiro. “Let’s go, little boy.”

            However, someone in the crowd gasped before turning to one of the Betters in the crowd. Yama vaguely heard their mutters as he armed for another battle (or, as he preferred, destruction). “What are the odds right now?” The unknown man questioned quickly to the Bettor, a regular human woman in a black hoodie.

            The girl peered out from the edge of her hood as Hiro threw the money in. Yama listened as she said, “Twenty to one the kid loses.”

            The man, however, quickly dug through his pockets pulling out all the money he hadn’t lost that night. “Fifty on the kid.”

            The Bettor lifted an eyebrow. “You kidding?” The fan lowered.

            “No, no, bet, now!” He hissed as he shoved the money into her hands.

            “Alright! Alright! Fifty on the kid.” She said as she took the money. “Last call on bets!”

            “Shoot, I’ll put twenty on Yama!” Another spoke.

            “I’ll throw on thirty!” Others bet money in spite of the grinning man.

            “You’re an idiot.” One threw to the man as he looked over.

            “Two bots enter.” The umbrella spun.

            “Bets closed!” The woman yelled as she tucked all the money away.

            “You’re all idiots!” The man hissed back, suddenly revealing a fork tongue. He was another magic in disguise of sorts, which was not uncommon in San Fransokyo. “I just bet on Little Oni.”

            Yama didn’t process the statement until the umbrella was up. Suddenly, the scared boy before him grinned, his controller expanding as the face of the bot flipped to one of red anger. “Megabot… Destroy.” The boy commanded as, before Yama’s eyes, the bot came back together.

            Yama scrambled to fight back, but the man’s words were true. The little boy was a real demon as he tore apart Little Yama. The fight had to have been one of the quickest and most brutal of the night. The crowd was stunned as Little Yama fell, the boy looking bored at the whole thing before flashing a light grin at the stunned Yuki.

            “Looks like I won!” He cheered a little too full of himself. Yuki leaned over, as she usually did to the winner, but her eyes never tore away from the destruction. The man in the crowd quickly collected his winnings before running off, knowing well and good that the presence of Little Oni only went from bad to worse. “I’m just as surprised as you were.” He said with a shrug as he pocketed the winnings. Not even looking up, he added, “Maybe we could go again?”

            Yama now knew the name. It was a rumor going around the Underground of a little brat who tricked you out of your money by playing the odds up until he really won it all. Yama had expected a young man or a legitimate demon, but, instead, he got the fourteen-year-old kid with the toy-like robot.

            “You swindled me! NO ONE SWINDLES YAMA!” He roared as he got to his feet. He had once been a wrestler, so his size and strength were nothing short of intimidating to most other opponents.

            Hiro backed up as Megabot was torn from his hands. “Get him, boys!” Yama threw as two others backed him up, one being a gargoyle and the other human with a rather intimidating metallic arm. Hiro was thrown into the wall by Yama’s stray hand as he let off a slight hiss at the impact.

            “Now, can’t we talk about this?” Hiro tried as he held up his hands. The gargoyle cracked his knuckles as Hiro flinched. “Guess not.” He readied for the punch…

            Then, something filled the alleys. A motorbike roared through as, suddenly, a moped broke around the corner. Yama and his men were thrown back in shock as a young man, not even in his mid twenties, came to a halt in front of Hiro. The man looked over, lost in breath, as his brown eyes bore into the teen.

            “Tadashi!” Hiro cheered just before the elder threw a helmet on the boy and dragged him onto the moped. “Great timing!” Before anything else could be heard, the boys zoomed away.

            Yama recovered, staring at the robot he still had in his hands. He grinned, thinking of the money he could reap from selling the little thing, but, suddenly, it attacked him and escaped. Rage renewed, he gave chase after the boys, his men behind him.

            The gargoyle, spreading his massive stone-colored wings, took to the air as the men rounded a corner. The moped reached a dad end at the far side, the boy covering his side before gripping the elder in order not to be thrown. The boys met the Yakuza leader’s gaze as the teen reeved his engine, driving back towards the demons and boss at speeds no moped should be able to achieve.

            Then, the two boys hit the ramp next to the men. They flew up into the air as the Gargoyle, caught off guard, caught the wheels to his face and body. From the look of the elder, this had not been intended, but the shot was suddenly altered as the boys flew up higher, landing on a roof ahead as the gargoyle crashed to the ground, injured and dazed.

            Yama ran around the corner with his last able man – the other would be sacked soon – but, as he reached an opening, he was run off my a number of squad cars. Their lights flashed brightly as, distantly and above, he heard a motor vehicle pull away and cut out. Yama raised his hands as guns came to land on him, anger bubbling in his gut.

            That kid and his brother would pay.


	2. Nerds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hiro has managed to escape certain doom at the hands of the magical mafia, but that's nothing to the wrath that a mad Tadashi has in store for him. However, the elder brother might just be taking things from a new angle...

            Tadashi was furious. No, that wasn’t the word for it. He was fucking mad, so fucking mad that he had actually sworn – in front of his precious baby brother, of all things! Hiro had been so stunned by the dirty words spilling out of his brother’s mouth that he had actually shut up for a little bit, which was honestly probably the best move considering that Tadashi had no inclination to talk to his brother.

            Let’s rewind, shall we?

            Tadashi had already been a little frayed all day. His latest project was _so close_ to being done, but he hadn’t gotten all the files compressed and processed yet. There were still issues in the design that he hadn’t figured out – it could be nothing short of _perfect_ for the Hamada boy – when his cell phone had begun to alarm loudly at his lab.

            It was his set alert for when Hiro went anywhere Tadashi knew the teen shouldn’t be going. He had been heading into the Underground territory, and Tadashi knew there was only one reason…

            Illegal bot fights.

            Bot fights were a popular sport in the city, but illegal bot fights were held all the time. Oh, yes, Hiro would say that only _betting_ on bot fights was illegal, but that had landed the boy’s neck in danger more times in the last year than Tadashi cared to count. Yet, here the fourteen-year-old prodigy was – heading into the most dangerous portions of San Fransokyo to fight with robots.

            Tadashi shuttered to think what would have happened if he hadn’t arrived in time, but this one had been too close. Magic in the air had affected his tech, so his readings hadn’t been clear as usual. He had swerved around so many alleys that he almost thought it would be too late.

           Magic, as Tadashi had learned from one of his professors his Freshman year, had an effect like an EMP on electronics but not in the same sense. In low dosages, magic could easily accommodate lower technology. It’s energetic properties, as the professor theorized (because no one had a true reason on why), ran counter to that of the normal electrical flow of electricity within modern technology. Humans had come to find ways around such blocks, even sending the same signal back at magics, but it only worked in highly tech-based environments, and only with low to medium level magics. Uppers no longer treaded near the city, but the mix of large magic and massive technology was always catastrophic if the history books showed anything.

           Why was this important? Well, while Tadashi had been racing around to find Hiro in a very _Magical_ part of town, his moped, which he had outfitted himself to be faster and more energy efficient, had overloaded on the magical energy. The landing on the roof had been the last fluke of the night because, right after, the machine had blown out, crashing to the roof with both Hamada brothers. Tadashi had managed to protect Hiro, but the bike had ultimately crashed into a roof doorway, crying out in roars of electrical pain – if machines had pain – before cutting out completely. The building’s only resident happened to be an old cat lady who yelled at the heavens when the boys managed to get themselves and the moped down to the street.

           But Tadashi’s precious moped, the one he had saved a year for and upgraded himself, was dead. If it was just the battery, he could have tried to fix it after they left the magical areas, but the whole bike had been trashed in the landing. On top of that, tracking Hiro had drained his cell phone battery, and Hiro had left his at home thinking Tadashi was always tracking him through it (no, he was tracking him through the chips sewn into his hoodie).

             So here the two were, with no way of driving home or calling for someone to pick them up.  Tadashi pushed his bike down the desolate roads as he glanced to his brother, who held his bot to his chest as he kept his eyes down. Tadashi didn’t know if he wanted to strangle the kid for being an idiot or hug him for being safe.

           Whoever said being an older sibling was easy was obviously not one.

           “Tadashi?” Hiro finally broke the silence between the two of them as he hesitantly looked up. Tadashi glared down at the boy, which was all the more intimidating by the fact that Tadashi was a tall nineteen-year-old boy – nearly twenty – whist Hiro was a short, barely pubescent fourteen-year-old kid.

           Tadashi continued to glare.

           Hiro looked down as he twisted one of Megabot’s arms. “Uh, I’m, uh, sorry about the bike. I promise to pay for it to be fixed.”

           Tadashi came to a stop as he rubbed the bridge of his nose with his left hand, his right steadying the bike. Hiro took a few steps before realizing his brother’s stop himself. The teen turned back as Tadashi looked forward to him. “Hiro, I don’t want your money. I don’t want you to have that money, either! You got it in an illegal manner! You better have something better, bonehead.”

           Hiro’s eyes looked up a little brighter at hearing his brother’s voice, but, instead of heading the warning, he took the bit of leash and ran with it. “But, Tadashi, it’s so awesome!” He threw as he held up his hands. “You know how much I made tonight? On one fight! Over 1000 Units!”

           Tadashi blinked at the number before frowning. “I don’t care how much you’re making, Hiro! It’s dangerous.”

           Hiro snorted as he continued walking. Tadashi kept up as to not lose his brother. “And, what, I should be doing something safer? Like what? Going to college like you?”

           Tadashi felt this same conversation play in his memory. It was the same one every time, and every time Hiro would disregard sound fact and run off into danger. This was the first time that Hiro had ventured so deeply into the backwaters of of San Fransokyo. The bot fights and battlers were so much more dangerous because they had to work around magical interface and, in many cases, the opponents were devious demons, literally and figuratively. While Tadashi had nothing against magics – his aunt raised him not to judge, and he had met some very nice Nekos whom enjoyed his aunt’s café – but that side of town could be nothing but trouble.

           Tadashi looked to the heavens, silently begging his parents to give him strength. However, instead of looking up completely, his eyes landed on a street sign. Tadashi stared at the sign as they reached the corner, the light not yet changed as traffic had picked up. He was a very far distance from the café at this point, but he did know somewhere they could go.

           Tadashi grinned as he crossed the street. “Come on, Hiro. We’re going this way.” He said as they reached the other end, going up another street away from the Café’s general direction.

           Hiro looked confused to his brother. “Wait, where are you going?”

           Tadashi shot his brother the notorious _look,_ one all eldest siblings acquired whist watching their sibs. “Well, since _someone_ totaled my bike, I need to take it to the shop. We can use a phone there to get a lift, too.”

           Hiro slumped and grumbled as he followed. “Fine, let’s go.” He added as the two walked. Hiro began to mess with Megabot as they walked, totally blocking out the world. Tadashi grinned. At this point, Hiro would follow him blindly until it was too late.

           Six more city blocks, and they reached their destination. Tadashi had to take the long way around the campus, though, to make it seem that they weren’t going in. It was the moment that they were before the main hall that Hiro finally realized where they were.

           “Why are we at your nerd school?!?” He whined as Tadashi came around to the shining entrance to the robotics building. Even as Hiro tried to whine, however, there was something in his eyes as he looked up to the building. Hiro had never been to the San Fransokyo Institute of Technology before. He’d seen the pictures Tadashi had shown him, but he had no interest “being told things he already knew.”

           However, if this worked, Tadashi might get his little bro to change his mind. “Well, this is the only place I can fix my _very special and modified_ bike, and, if my friend is still here, he could give us a lift home.”

           Hiro continued to frown, but, taking one look at the bike, he sighed in annoyance. “How did you even get half those parts?” He wondered to himself as he followed Tadashi up the ramp.

           “Parts shop on campus. Turned it into my Freshman year project to get some credit in Applied Curcuits.” He commented offhandedly. While not as much a genius as Hiro, Tadashi had graduated high school at seventeen. He was now finishing off his sophomore year at SFIT. He constantly bugged Hiro to join him at the most technologically advanced college in the city-state (and possibly the whole of the Western continent), but Hiro was stubborn.

           “How long will this take?” Hiro threw as Tadashi rounded a corner, approaching the open lab space. He’d worked in that area last year, but a grant had gotten his own lab this year.

           Not that Hiro knew that.

           “Come on, ya big baby.” Tadashi threw over his shoulder as he reached the door. He threw it open as he looked back to his little brother who followed with the most annoyed look on his face, lip out in a childish pout even as his eyes traitorously twitched to look along the walls.

           When Hiro was finally in behind Tadashi, the elder brother’s plan suddenly came together. Hiro’s jaw dropped – literally – as he walked into the lab. Rockets flew past as robots rolled along the floor. With finals due around the corner, the lab was more active than usual, which worked perfectly for what Tadashi needed. Hiro’s eyes swiveled in their sockets as he tried to keep track of everything moving. Tadashi set his scooter to the side just as another bike flew in across the grounds, coming to a hard stop in the corner and garnering all of Hiro’s attention.

           Tadashi couldn’t help but grin as Hiro was drawn in like a fly to honey at the electro-mag bike. However, his smile turned to a snicker as Go Go came up behind the teen and scaring the living daylights out of the boy. Deciding he should save Hiro’s skin from Go Go’s wrath, he came up behind the teen as he spoke. “Go Go, this is my brother, Hiro.” Go Go pulled off her helmet, cocking her eyebrow and blowing a bubble as her eyes bore into Hiro.

           “Welcome to the Nerd Lab.” She threw before walking away to put her helmet down. _And there goes Go Go, the woman of few words._ Tadashi thought as, before he knew it, Hiro was off again.

           Hiro ended up meeting all of Tadashi’s friends: Go Go, Wasabi, Honey Lemon, and Fred (who had complained about how his friends couldn’t do some old-world comic book science). Tadashi eventually got Hiro out of the lab, tugging his scooter into his own lab just around the corner. The whole time, Tadashi had a smirk on his face as he looked at the sparkle in Hiro’s eyes. _I’m close._ Tadashi thought as they entered the personal lab. It was far smaller, but it faced an outer wall, allowing the window to pour some of the outside light in before the automatic lights kicked in.

           “Hey, so, what’s your project?” Hiro questioned as Tadashi parked his moped. It seems the teen had already forgotten why they were there.

           Tadashi grabbed up a roll of duct tape as Hiro’s interest dwindled slightly. “Hate to break it to you, bro.” The teen sighed. “But duct tape’s already been invented.” Before Hiro could throw in any more sass, however, Tadashi ripped off a piece of tape, rolled up his brother’s sleeve, and ripped off a few hairs and some skin with the tape. Hiro, predictably, yelped as he wrenched his arm back.

 _The perks of younger siblings: Test subjects._ Tadashi couldn’t help but mentally add. So far, no one but his friends and mentor knew of Tadashi’s idea, but Hiro would be the first test subject – other than Tadashi – for Baymax to be tested on. As Baymax came to life, Hiro’s face fell slack once more, following the robot as it crossed the room. However, all the pauses actually gave Tadashi an idea to add to the programing.

 _Baymax is taking too long with other things. I should add a system bypass to get to the patient first._ Tadashi mentally added as Baymax introduced himself with a little wave of his arm.

           “Hello, I am Baymax, your personal healthcare companion.” Baymax said as Tadashi rounded behind the robot. “I was activated when you said the word ‘Ow.’” Tadashi couldn’t help but mouth along with the robot. His belly lit with the ten faces of pain, just as Tadashi programed, before Baymax added, “On a scale of one to ten, how would you rate your pain?”

           “Physically? Or emotionally?” Oh, yes, more sass from the little ball of angst himself. Tadashi’s lip jutted out in a pout.

           “Why so mean?” Tadashi threw as Hiro rolled his eyes at the elder’s shenanigans.

           “I will scan you now.” Baymax proceeded without pause. “Scan complete. You have a slight epidermal abrasion to your lower right arm. I will treat you with a sanitizing spray.”

           “Wait, what’s in the spray? What if I’m allergic?” Hiro threw as Baymax gently took his arm.

           “You do not have any allergies to specific chemicals though you are slightly allergic to peanuts.” Baymax recited as he continued to take care of Hiro.

           Hiro looked over Baymax’s shoulder as Tadashi came around. “I’ve programmed him with thousands of medical procedures, and his scanners are so exact that they could monitor neurotransmitter levels from twenty feet.” Tadashi explained as he clicked open the data chip port. “I store it all here.” He pointed as a green chip popped out. It was over a terabyte of data space there, half of which Tadashi had already filled. There was still more to load, but Tadashi had time to finish it.

           Hiro cocked an eyebrow. “I mean, it’s all cool, but we do live in a city where magic exists. I could always hit up a bot fighter to get a potion or something.”

           Tadashi rolled his eyes at the younger Hamada. “You and I both know that’s not how it works.” Contrary to what pop culture of the early twentieth century made people believe, magic had its limits. Potions and spells could be powerful healing methods, but they had their stark limits. Spells were only good on physical injuries, and even larger, more deadly injuries could still be life threatening. Potions were like modern medications in that they were constantly being developed to further counter illness and pathogens. “Besides, Baymax will soon have an archive of all pathogens and their sources – magical or not – in order to diagnose disorders at their source. He’s going to be a great help in healthcare because he can customize his response to whatever the patient needs.”

           Hiro, as much as he hated to admit, let off an impressed whistle. “You even got the sensors to work around magical interference?” At the nod of the elder, Hiro went in. His face fell flat into Baymax’s soft middle as the vinyl cover slid. “He’s so soft.”

           “I was going for a safe, huggable design.” _Mostly because kids like you hate hospitals._ Tadashi added with a small smirk as his brother looked in. By the way Hiro drove closer to see through the cover, Tadashi knew that Hiro was sucked in.

           “Whoa, look at that skeleton. What is that, titanium?”

           “Carbon fiber. He can lift up to a thousand pounds.” Hiro’s face came out of the vinyl to shoot his brother a stunned look, his eyes wide in disbelief as his hair fell away from his forehead back into the mess that could never be tamed.

           “Shut up.” Hiro muttered as he looked back in. “Where did you get all this?”

           Tadashi shrugged for his own sake. “Made a lot of it right here. Like I said, the robotics department will fund a lot if you can turn it into a research project.” Well, Baymax wasn’t really a main project of the lab, but he’d gotten it approved through his advisor.

           Hiro came out again as Baymax, using a hidden compartment in his right hand, positioned a lollipop in front of Hiro. “You have been a good boy. Here, have a lollipop.” The teen always had the worse sweet tooth, and, the moment he saw the lollipop, he pounced on the treat. “I cannot deactivate until you say that you are satisfied with your care.”

           Hiro withdrew the treat from his mouth as he shot the robot a grin, waving his lollipop in the air as he lightly replied, “Well then, I am satisfied with my care.” With that, Baymax turned to return to his charging station.

           “Burning the midnight oil, Mr. Hamada?” Both boys turned as a greying man stood in the door. Tadashi held a private smirk as he thought of how Hiro would react next.

           “Oh, just ran into a little scooter trouble. This was the closest stop.” Tadashi nodded to the corner where his beaten up moped stood.

           The man looked at it, rubbing his chin. “Well, that certainly doesn’t look too good.” He even lifted the seat to look within, which not even Hiro was allowed to do. “Seems like you’ve blown out a number of circuits along with the physical damage.  What were you doing? Playing with electrical currents?” He set the seat down as he looked to the elder Hamada with a knowing smirk.

           Tadashi shook his head as he remembered the times his projects had fried, especially when he was learning on how to overcome magical interference. “No, no, I have to blame my brother for this.” At this point, Tadashi gestured to his younger brother who, up until this point, had been sucking on his lollipop to chime in.

           Hiro withdrew the lollipop from his mouth quickly, though Tadashi noticed that there was nothing but a stick left. The man, however, now smiled more brightly. “Ah, so this is the famous Hiro that you’ve told me about.” He turned to Hiro for the next line of inquiry. “Your brother tells me you are a skilled bot fighter. May I?” He asked, extending a hand when he noticed Megabot.

           Hiro stepped forward and handed the professor the bot as the man examined it closer. Tadashi came up at the divider as he caught Hiro saying, “I can show you how I built it, if you like.”

           Tadashi couldn’t help it. Activating a sensor on the divider, the opaque glass turned clear at his knock. “Hey, genius, he designed it.” Tadashi gestured to the professor as the wall went dark again. Tadashi wanted to laugh as his brother stuttered, realizing that he was talking to the Head of Robotics, Tadashi’s mentor, and a long-time hero to the Hamada boys, Robert Callaghan. Tadashi knew that, if the professor couldn’t turn Hiro, then no one could. He grabbed his phone up from a charger he left there, having thought ahead to plugging it in when he had grabbed the duct tape. There was now enough charge to call Aunt Cass for pick up, and Tadashi could always pick up his moped later. The trolley came this way, just not back.

           When he emerged, playing the cool brother about it all, he could instantly see that Hiro had been hooked. His eyes glimmered brighter than Tadashi had seen in a while, filled with newfound challenge by Callaghan’s words. Callaghan had even somehow turned the whole thing into a _challenge_ , pushing robotics to its limits and then some. Tadashi wanted to laugh as the professor even called bot fighting too easy, that some ordinary bot fighter could never make it in the robotic program. By the time they made it out the main entrance hall, standing on the steps as they waited for Aunt Cass, Hiro turned to Tadashi, his mouth wide open as the words the elder had waited so long for spilled out.

           “I need to go to this school. I will lose my mind if I don’t.” Hiro paced back and forth before he turned his pleading look to Tadashi. "How do I get in?"

           But, while Tadashi privately cheered at his own win, the shadows seemed to shift ever so unnaturally.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to let you know that chapter updates will be sporadic. I post as I write, but I have no set schedule, especially with returning to classes next week (Uni student). Sorry ahead of time. Also, heads up, this is the last chapter that really sticks to the film. In the next chapter, I'm going to take some real left turns from cannon.


	3. Building Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hiro really wants to go to Nerd School now, but he's a little lacking in the ideas department. However, Tadashi's there to help!

            Hiro’s head hurt, physically, but it was nothing to the bruise his ego was taking. “Stupid,” BANG, “worthless,” BANG, “empty,” BANG, “brain!” Hiro let this final hit last as his forehead came to rest on the table top. Tadashi had explained that there was a normal application that Hiro had to do to get into the college, but he’d have to do a special project in order to get into the “Nerd” Lab (funny enough, that was the name that everyone called it now since hearing from Tadashi the term coined by Hiro). Otherwise, Hiro would have to take normal classes and could apply as a Sophomore.

            Hiro didn’t want to take any boring freshman classes if he could help it, though, so he was dead-set onto getting into the lab and bypassing and/or testing out of as many boring ones as he could. After all, he’d taken a bunch of AP tests through high school just so that he could skip grades and requirements.

            However, his big brain was utterly empty. He groaned into the balls of paper that scattered around him. Hundreds of ideas, none of which fit everything Hiro needed. They were all to simple for the teen, already done, not worthy to get into the lab. Tadashi had freaking presented a machine that used small hovercraft-like machines to lift hundreds of pounds of debris in order to save people from wreckage.  He’d impressed the pants off everyone, including Hiro for the ingenuity of his brother.

            Now, the teen wished his brother had been more of a slacker, because nothing he was coming up with could match the brilliance and truly selfless technology his brother came up with. Said brother wasn’t even helping as he lounged in his bed, flipping through a magazine. Well, he couldn’t help build the machine nor design it, but Tadashi usually was at least _some_ help.

            “Washed up at fourteen, so sad.” _Yup._ Hiro mentally grumbled. _So much help._

            “I got nothing!” Hiro whined as he shot up. Running a hand over the growing bump on his forehead, he went on with, “I can’t do this! I’m a failure!”

            Suddenly, the chair was wrenched around as Hiro came face-to-face with his brother. Tadashi’s brows were furrowed in concentration as he focused on his brother. “I’m not giving up on you.” He threw before grabbing Hiro by the legs. His look turned mischievous just before Hiro’s whole world turned upside down. “You just got to look at this from a new angle!”

            Hiro bobbed back and forth as he _really_ hated his brother’s sense of humor. However, when the shaking stopped and Hiro fell limp (because he’d done this before, and there was no getting down until Tadashi dropped him onto the bed), the teen’s eyes wandered across his desktop. Suddenly, his eyes came to rest on his personal bot fighting pride and joy, Megabot, when something came to him. In a flash of words and pictures, numbers and more, circuitry too form in Hiro’s head as he imagined something greater. The magnetic survos he’d already figured out how to make them work almost independently of one another, but together they were so much more powerful, tearing apart bots with little energy drain.

            But what if he took it further? That kind of strength could lift buildings with enough of them. The pieces cold roll quickly, turning the bot onto the street at up to thirty miles an hour. Hiro had barely scratched the surface of their true strength in the initial designs, and he had planned to increase them tenfold. Hell, he could even imagine them assembling things on their own.

            No, not on their own. He needed a controller, something so precise that it could turn hundreds – no, thousands of pieces of tech – into something more. If he scaled them down even further, he could increase the dexterity of the design and turn them into something great…

            Hiro gasped as he swung his arm around into Tadashi’s side. The elder man nearly dropped his brother, but he had become quite good at this over the years. “Tadashi! Put me down! No, don’t put me down! Get me near my desk! I need a notebook and pencil!”

            Tadashi backed up obligingly, strengthening the hold on Hiro (and very glad that lifting all that heavy machinery had kept him in shape, because his brother was getting _heavy_ ) as Hiro reached up, grabbing a pencil and a notebook. While most people in San Fransokyo would think this weird given their electronic dependence, the Hamada’s had always been ones to write everything on paper first. It somehow gave life and meaning to what they were building next.

            Hiro scribbled ferociously, so concentrated that he didn’t notice as Tadashi gently set the boy on his own bed. Hiro wrote two, three, four pages of notes without even noticing. Finally, the patience ate away at the elder as he plopped down next to Hiro on his bed, finally disturbing the boy as, in his surprise, clutched the pad to his chest. “So, bonehead, what cha’ got?”

            Hiro focused on Tadashi before his grin became wide, glowing with a power that could light all of San Fransokyo – no, the western continent – as the teen sat up. “My entrance project.” He flashed the last page to Tadashi, revealing a sketch of one of his pieces of Megabot.

            But it wasn’t a piece. Tadashi was familiar with the inter-workings of Megabot considering that Hiro hadn’t originally built it for bot fighting (that came later in the, as Tadashi liked to call it, “My brother has become a bigger troll than ever” stage).  No, this one’s measurements were much smaller, more precise, as the design itself was years – if not eons – ahead of what Tadashi had ever seen. He examined every micro circuit as his jaw dropped, Hiro’s growing wider at the sight of his brother putting it all together.

            “Unbelievable.” Tadashi muttered as he flipped another page, only confirming his theory. “Hiro, this is… I mean…”

            Hiro nodded hugely. “I know, right? Imagine all I could do with these! Rescue work, transportation, building…” Hiro trailed off as he looked to the sketch. “Do you… do you think it’s enough to get into the lab?” Hiro looked up hesitantly to his brother.

            Tadashi looked at Hiro now with lidded eyes and a tight lip. It was a _you’re an idiot_ look that Tadashi threw at Hiro more often now than before, especially when he had recently saved the boy from a bot fight. Hiro winced as he waited for the ultimate shot down. _It’s good, buddy, but it might not do it…_ Tadashi would be super polite about it, which would make it all the worse.

            “Hiro,” Tadashi spoke before he got down to his brother’s level using a slight slouch of his shoulders. “You’re an idiot.”

            _Ouch, that was more brutal than I expected._ Hiro thought as he looked to the paper. Never before had he felt this way, but he might have just wanted to cry right there. Here it was, probably his greatest invention to date, and it wouldn’t do.

            “If this doesn’t get you a teaching position, let alone the lab place, I’ll eat my hat.” Tadashi continued as Hiro spun his head around. Tadashi smiled so brightly now, matching the one Hiro had given earlier. Hiro swallowed as his whole demeanor transformed, becoming the glowing bubble of energy he was before.

            Ego retained, Hiro shot up from his spot as he paced in place, adding a few notes here and there. “If this is going to work, I’m going to need a very specific, very delicate controller. Megabot’s is too complex for the normal person, and he’s only three pieces.  No, I need something like a… a…”

            Hiro turned to his brother for help, but Tadashi shrugged. “You made it this far.” Tadashi stood up as he ruffled his little brother’s hair. “You can think of something. Use that big brain of yours.”

            As the hand withdrew, Hiro’s eyes took on a whole new light. “Tadashi! You’re a genius!” Hiro turned to a new page again, drawing like mad. “I can do a hat – no, too bulky – headband? I’ll think on it, but that’s it! If these things are going to do whatever you imagine, then you should be able to just think it to have it come true!” Hiro’s pencil broke mid-sketch as the boy genius just threw it to the side – nearly hitting Tadashi – before he just went for another one. “I just need to do some research into brain pathways and chemical signals…”

            “You can borrow my research for Baymax.” Tadashi offered as he sat back on his bed, withdrawing a custom laptop (a gift from Hiro when Tadashi had been accepted into SFIT) in order to pull up his research. “I can’t help you with the idea or building, but there is nothing in the rules about sharing background literature.” While Tadashi was seen as the angel of the Hamada brothers, only Hiro really knew Tadashi’s more mischievous side. He was a master of loopholes if Hiro had ever seen one, and he was far craftier than most people gave him credit for. After all, he had to keep up with his brother (who still didn’t know about the tracking chips).

            Hiro grinned further. Yes, that would speed things up so much. “Thanks, Tadashi.” However, where Tadashi usually expected that to be the end, he was suddenly shoved by the side as his brother actually hugged him, nearly knocking the laptop to the floor. Tadashi had been so focused on the screen he hadn’t even seen his brother move.

            Before Tadashi could process that his teenage, angsty brother was actually hugging him _freely,_ Hiro was already off again, the moment gone for the teen as he sprinted down the stairs, probably to the garage-lab they had created over the years. Tadashi shook his head, grabbing a spare junk drive from his bedside desk (he had left a number there after the number of times he had gotten programing epiphanies only to have no way to save) as he downloaded the entirety of his neurotransmitter research. His eyes, however, lingered on the photo there.

            There was a family of four there, a little Tadashi with his favorite ball cap – a gift from his father that was far too big for his head – as the younger grinned to the camera. A man was in the picture with dark black hair and the most piercing gold, mischievous eyes whist a woman who resembled Aunt Cass – except for the brown eyes and slightly longer hair – whom held a swaddled baby. The adults were, of course, Akito and Laura Hamada while the baby was none other than a little Hiro. Tadashi remembered more of his and Hiro’s parents than Hiro because the younger had been three when they passed, but even then things were sometimes fuzzy. They were the greatest people Tadashi knew, always working hard to accommodate his and Hiro’s budding intelligence (especially when they showed signs of greater knowledge beyond their years) and just loving them for whatever they threw the adult’s ways. They had lived outside of San Fransokyo, in a house that was surrounded by forests where Hiro and he had played often.

            Tadashi didn’t remember the fire. He woke up to his Aunt holding him without much recollection of the days prior. He had taken a hit to the head at some point, and Cass had explained that he was suffering from amnesia. When she had taken them to the doctors in San Fransokyo, they came to the conclusion that it was a combination of stress from the event and the trauma. Cass had to break it gently to Tadashi and Hiro that their parents had died, but the two had survived. Even at three, Hiro knew what it all meant, and, for a long time, the two clung to each other in the city that was too big for the little boys. That bond had fluctuated as they grew older, but Tadashi was glad that Hiro was beginning to show his true colors once more.

His laptop, as he would tell anyone, was one of a kind and _fast_ as gigabytes of information traveled down the line to the drive. It had taken a mere half an hour to complete when most data transfers of that size could take _hours._ Once done, Tadashi glanced to the clock.

            Shrugging, he decided to grab a coffee from the café, say hi to Aunt Cass and whatever students were studying down there (they were fairly close to San Fransokyo University, where Fred went, so there were always students down there) before he went to make sure Hiro wasn’t going to go crazy to quickly.

            He grabbed his ballcap and shoes for good measure because he didn’t want to seem rude walking into the café without them. He stuffed the chip into his pocket as he left his room. Tadashi clomped through the main level, making sure to give the snoozing Moochi an affectionate pet as he passed the fat, napping cat on the couch. Descending further, he entered the main hold of the Lucky Cat Café. Sure enough, there were students on one corner, obviously pouring away at a project as Aunt Cass served a young woman at the counter.

            “Hi, Aunt Cass.” Tadashi greeted as he took a to-go cup from the counter behind. He also got close enough to the woman to see that she was one of their regulars, a Neko (her ears barely sticking out from her mess of brown hair) and a little black nose with some wiskers Tadashi noticed only when she put her own cup down. She was always in there, saying the atmosphere was full of good energy (and she loved the Onigiri with fresh salmon that Aunt Cass had on the menu).

            Aunt Cass smiled as she turned to Tadashi. “Awe, if it isn’t my little boy!” She greeted as Tadashi walked over to one of the machines to get his coffee.

            Tadashi couldn’t help but roll his eyes. He was now several inches taller than her, yet the woman had been calling him that as long as he could remember. “Really, Aunt Cass?” He commented as he flipped one of the switches to pour his aunt’s famous coffee into the cup. Whatever she put into the brew, it never gave anyone gitters or caused people to crash from caffeine highs. It was the best stuff for every late-worker and college student. “I’m nearly twenty.” He reminded her as he turned around, only for the woman to pinch his cheek.

            “And I was there the day you were born, young man.” Aunt Cass threw before releasing his cheek. Tadashi rubbed it even though it really didn’t hurt. “You came out kicking and screaming just as much as Hiro, and the whole time I thought YOU were going to be the trouble maker with the number of times you got out of your diapers…”

            “Whoa, whoa, whoa, too much info.” Tadashi threw as he waved his coffee in front of his face, cheeks already tinting pink.

            Cass got a laugh out of the whole thing as she grabbed a bucket full of dirty dishes. “I’m going to take these back. Where’s Hiro, by the way?”

            Tadashi’s grin returned full force. “He got his application project idea. He’s working in the lab.” Tadashi explained as he capped his coffee, taking a sip. It tasted like heaven. “I was just about to go check on him.”

            Now the elder woman smiled as well, not one of teasing as before but one full of pride and excitement. “I’m so glad that you finally managed to get through to him, Tadashi.” She pulled him into a one-arm hug as the teen slumped a little to accommodate her pull.

            Tadashi returned with one arm as the one with the coffee shot out to prevent spilling. “So am I, Aunt Cass.” He admitted as they broke. “You should see the designs. They’re amazing!” He gushed in pride.

            Cass laughed out loud. “I’m sure they will be, but I’ll wait for the final project. Looking at any of you boy’s plans gives me a headache.” She always encouraged the boys to do their best in the robotics field as long as they stayed out of trouble (*cough*Hiro*cough*), but she herself did not specialize there. She had gone to culinary school, so she could work a kitchen better than the boys could ever dream of. She gave Tadashi a pat on the shoulder before adding, “I’ve got a group working late, but you boys better not over work yourselves.” She added to Tadashi as he took another sip.

            “We won’t.” Tadashi promised with a roll of his eyes. After all, whenever one Hamada bro put in too much work time and nothing else, the other would grown increasingly more pestering and insistent until the first gave in. It was how Hiro had broken Tadashi’s all-nighter streak earlier that semester, and it was the way Tadashi had gotten through to Hiro on multiple occasions.

            As Aunt Cass left, however, the Neko at the counter turned to Tadashi, her whiskers perking back and forth.  “Oi, Tadashi.” The boy turned to the woman as she nodded out the door. “If your going to look for your brother, he isn’t in the building. He ran down the street about twenty minutes ago.”

            Tadashi’s smile slipped. “What?!?” He hissed, not wanting to alert Aunt Cass.

            The woman nodded, setting her head on her slightly-clawed yet manicured hands. “Your Aunt was dealing with another couple of tables, but I spotted him in the dark making a run for it. I just thought he was running out for something, but…”

            Tadashi was already gone. Up to the bedroom, he grabbed his keys and jacket, but he cursed to himself as he realized that his moped was still at the lab (it was taking some longer time to get the last part he needed to fix it). Instead, he grabbed his cell and ran back down to the second level. In the kitchen was a notpad normally for groceries, but Tadashi quickly scribbled “Out for parts” before running our the back door to the streets.

            Tadashi looked to his phone as the tracker came to life. Hiro was still in the “safe” zone that Tadashi had programed into the phone, but he was getting farther away and fast, like he was on a bus or trolley. Following the path Hiro must have taken, Tadashi shot through the streets.

            In the café, the Neko twirled her drink with the tip of her nail. Unlike Tadashi, she had heard the rumors about Hiro, and she could bet where he was going. She knew the boy was a fighter, and the way she had overheard snippets of his conversation, he would be drawn back sooner or later.

            If she was a bettor, she’s say that the teen was headed back for the Underground.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I lied a little on the "left turn at cannon" thing, but I ended up expanding more on the relationship over speeding through the plot. Chapter 4 is almost ready, and, I can assure you, _nothing_ written is cannon.
> 
> Hope you enjoy! Valete!


	4. Welcome to the Underground

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hiro has run off somewhere, and Tadashi has to give chase right into the heart of what he'd been hoping to keep Hiro away from. However, there's more to the Underground than Tadashi anticipated, and now he's getting a little education of his own.

            Hiro adjusted the small shoulder bag he had thrown over his shoulder. While he had run out earlier in his normal clothes, he now wore over everything a black cloak that was lined in ancient symbols around the edging of the hood and down the sides and around the bottom edge stitched in white. The cloak fell to just parallel with the bottom of his shorts, so his shoes stuck out from the bottom. The hood was still down as he clomped down the maze of alleys that he knew all too well.

            Hiro shifted through the bag as he checked the contents. “Hm, let’s see, money, yes, notebook, check, weird thing that was once a part of Tadashi’s hovercraft, check, wait, where did I put the…” Hiro was so distracted that he completely missed the sounds of feet behind him. Hiro paused to stuff his hand into the otherwise small pouch, only for his whole hand to disappear inside. “Where did it…”

            Hiro was wrenched from his thoughts as someone grabbed his shoulder. Hiro tensed as he spun around, waiting for some demon or bot fighter to recognize him. Instead, he came face-to-face with his out-of-breath older brother. “Hiro! Where the heck were you going?!?” The elder man threw as Hiro’s jaw dropped.

            “Tadashi? How did you find me???” Hiro threw as he looked around. Had he left a trail?

            “Not important.” Tadashi added as his breath caught. He pulled up on the cloak as his eyebrow cocked. “What are you wearing?”

            “What? I think I look good!” Hiro defended as Tadashi straightened, rolling his eyes.

            He began to tug his brother back down the maze of alleys he’d somehow managed to navigate, even as the tracker had gone haywire. “Let’s get you home. I can’t believe you’re running into danger just after you agreed…” Voices filled the alleyway as both Hamada boys tensed.

            “Shit.” Hiro muttered as he pulled out his bag once more. Tadashi was about to reprimand Hiro, but the boy, instead, pulled some fabric from his bag, a cloth far too big to actually fit in the thing. “Put this on, quick!” Hiro shoved the fabric into his brother’s arms.

            “What? What are you talking about?” Tadashi hissed as Hiro threw up his hood.

            “Just do it! Non-magics aren’t exactly treated the best down here!” Hiro had already begin tugging on the fabric. “It’s a magic cloak. You need to put it on, now!”

            Tadashi scrambled suddenly as Hiro, too, pulled at the fabric. In the mess of limbs, Tadashi had gotten the clasp in hand, swinging it around his shoulders as it clicked into place. Suddenly, the smaller fabric – which had only reached to his waist previous – extended down to the middle of his lower legs. It was a dark blue color with the same white stitching as Hiro’s. Tadashi got his hood up in time as a particularly nasty looking demon, with harsh red scales and spiked ears wearing nothing but a pair of jeans, along with some creature that looked like a slug came down the alley discussing the necessary ingredients they needed to buy.

            As they passed, not even casting a glance to the boys, Tadashi released a breath he didn’t know he had been holding. Yes, he didn’t fear magics in general, but he was in a part of town he didn’t know, with his little brother who had no idea how to protect himself. Tadashi turned to the younger Hamada, but Hiro was already three steps ahead. “Come on, Tadashi!” He called as he took down the same path as the magics.

            Tadashi wanted to tear out his hair at the little boy as he gave chase once more. “Hiro! Where are you going? We need to go the OTHER way!” He threw as he caught up.

            “No, we can’t.” Hiro threw as he looked up to his brother. “These alleys are enchanted. Once your in, you don’t get out without going the whole way. It’s a protection charm.” He explained as he rounded another corner without pause. “Going back the way you came doesn’t work. There are two ways out of this maze, and the quickest way is to cut through the main street.” Hiro shot his older brother a knowing grin.

            The elder brother, however, was not seeing the point. Worse so, he was concerned in the fact that his brother knew where to go. “Hiro, how do YOU know all of this? Why are we in an enchanted maze anyway?”

            Hiro paused at a section of wall as Tadashi nearly fell into his brother. Hiro looked up with hi wide eyes glimmering in something mischievous yet very pleased with himself. “Well, I’ll explain along the way, but you have to help now. You can’t tell ANYONE about this because it’s SUPER secret, got it?” Before Tadashi could answer, Hiro grabbed the elder’s arm and pulled him through the wall.

            Tadashi blinked as he realized he was no longer in some dingy alley. Instead, roads of stalls and shops opened up as lantern lights floated above of their own power. Lights and fairies danced in the air as all manner of magics roamed the roads and yelled in the stalls. People ran back and forth frantically, looking for parts or food or ingredients of all sorts. A handful of kids, looking no older than four or five (though Tadashi did pick out an elf, so she was probably about fifty or sixty though she looked five), even ran past Tadashi and Hiro as Hiro tugged his brother further down the beautiful, ambient roads.

            “Welcome to the real Underground, Big Brother.” Hiro threw over his shoulder with a grin as Tadashi’s stunned face and swiveling head raked over the alley just trying to take it all in. “The parts that people usually associate with the Underground are the seedy parts, but that’s because this part is so well hidden. Back when I tried to go to my first bot fight, I got lost down the maze and ended up here on pure accident.” Tadashi tried to grip down on the sudden urge to grab his brother into a hug. Hiro had gone to his first bot fight at twelve, as far as Tadashi knew, and the thought of his tiny brother being alone in the city…

            “Hiro…”

            “Little Oni.”

            Now Tadashi stopped to shoot his brother a pure look of _what?_ His eyebrow was cocked in disbelief at the younger. “Really?”

            Hiro rolled his eyes. “That’s what they call me down here?”

            Tadashi went with a different name then. “Otouto.” Hiro stuck his tongue out. Tadashi hadn’t called Hiro that in a while, but if the boy wasn’t going to be called his real name, Tadashi sure as hell wasn’t going to call him some dumb bot fighting nickname. “What are you doing here now?”

            “I need to get a few things for the project.” Hiro returned as if it was obvious. He jutted his hear further down the alley. “The shop is around the corner.” Hiro turned, but Tadashi grabbed the nap of his cloak first, careful to not pull the hood off.

            “Hiro! You can’t use magic for a technology project! You can’t evne use magic!” Tadashi threw before Hiro turned, hissing at his brother.

            “SHH!!” Hiro whispered as he held a finger to his mouth. The younger looked around quick for anyone listening in, but no one turned. “I am not, you nerd! There’s a parts shop down here that gives the best price on everything! I use him to get all my bot supplies.” Hiro added as he grabbed his brother’s arm once more. “Come ON!” Hiro pulled his brother more.

            Tadashi wasn’t sure of any of this, but, at the same time, Hiro obviously knew where he was going. The elder boy felt like he should be more hesitant, but there was just something in the air of this alley, the Underground, that soothed his nerves. It was inviting in the same way that walking into a lab was inviting, a rush like the moment he got Baymax to work properly.

            Unbeknownst to him, Hiro felt the same way. He was drawn back to the alley where looks could be deceiving, where no one judged him because he was smarter (until he threw it into their faces, that is). He loved the alley for many reasons, especially in that it was an escape from the reality he had come to hate with being a genius kid in high school.

            Hiro turned towards a shop tucked away between charm vendors and apothecaries. In faded letters carved into a wooden stall sign, the words _Delphi’s Parts_ looked back. The outide was of an old store front, windows darkened as a single metal lantern was lit at the front as the only sign that someone was home. The door was wooden with an ornate handle that Hiro didn’t hesitate to rip open as a bell rung. Not wanting to lose his brother, Tadashi followed before the door snapped shut.

            Inside, however, Tadashi felt a little part of him begin to squeal as his jaw dropped once more. While the outside had been nothing special, the inside was lit by ornate overhead lighting that filled the space but also allowed lights from the windows (tinted, Tadashi added) to fall in as the shop had full view of the street. Inside on aged shelving and crammed towers were every manner of parts and mechanics that Tadashi could ever need. The store was larger on the inside than out, with a ceiling seven feet up and the space stretching a good ten meters back where Tadashi spotted _another_ double door marked “storage.” Ground to ceiling, shelves and shelves of electronics and cables called to Tadashi like a kid to a candy store.

            A rough voice interrupted his thoughts. “Ah, it seems like the Little Oni finally decided to grace my shop once more.” Tadashi and Hiro turned to the left wall as a man emerged from one lane. He looked old, at least in his sixties, with short white hair pushed back and tanned yet heavily wrinkled skin. He wore a simple white button-down paired with black pants and sandal shoes. He was slightly hunched, using a cane to walk, as tinted sunglasses covered his eyes.

            “Hey Mr. D.” Hiro greeted as he tugged down his hood. “Sorry it’s been a while. Megabot hasn’t bitten the big one yet.”

            The old man shook his head as an aged sigh escaped his throat. “You kids and your bots. Who’s this other lad with you? He here to buy bot parts as well?”

            Tadashi followed Hiro’s lead. “Ah, no, sorry. I’m Hiro’s older brother, Tadashi.” He glanced at his younger brother. “I tried following Hiro because he ran off into the night without telling anyone.”

            “What would you have done, anyway?” Hiro shot as he cleared his throat. “You shouldn’t run off alone, Hiro! You’re so young! Go use your big brain for something useful!” He intoned in his best imitation of Tadashi.

            Tadashi huffed as he crossed his arms. “I do not sound like that. Besides, if you actually _didn’t_ run off to bot fights every time I turned my back, then we’d have another story.”

            “Hey, I quit, didn’t I?” Hiro threw at his brother as he crossed his arms in return.

            The bickering was broken up by the laughter of the old man. “He’s just as you described, Hiro.” Mr. D chuckled as he came forth, his cane clicking against the aged wooden floor. “Well then, what are you building if you’re not bot fighting?”

            Hiro dug around in his bag once more. Tadashi lifted an eyebrow, wondering just where Hiro had gotten the expansion charm bag. _Actually, never mind._ Tadashi shook his head as his brother pulled out the book. _He obviously knows this place better than I give him credit for._ Tadashi still felt terrible knowing that his baby brother had run off into the Underground without him. He felt like a failure of a brother for not, at the very least, trying to help Hiro and protect him more.

            “Well, I need some wires at a millimeter size, a bunch of magnetic servos, parts for the super capacitor but on a micro scale…” Hiro began to recite as he read off the notebook.

            From the crinkle in the man’s forehead, Tadashi could tell he was rolling his eyes. “Sounds like a lot of the normal gear. Go at it, kid, and I’ll sit with your brother. If you can’t find something, I’ll check the back.” Tadashi noticed that there were now two chairs and a coffee table now tucked into the corner ( _how had he missed that?_ ). Beside that was the check-out counter along the same wall, partially obscured by the parallel tower of parts. Mr. D sat down in one against the window as he offered the one against the wall to Tadashi. Tadashi looked over to where his brother had been, but the teen was already off.

            With nothing better to do, Tadashi did take the offered seat. “Thanks, Mr. D, was it?” Tadashi clarified as the man sat back, head against his head cushion.

            “That it is, my boy.” The man replied with a serene smile on his face. “You got questions, ask ‘em.” Mr. D added as Tadashi jumped.

            Yes, he had _so many_ questions about _everything,_ especially this world that Hiro had stumbled upon and taken to so easily. He had to wonder how Hiro came to know the man, how he was so comfortable with a non-magic in his presence. Was he even a magic? He didn’t look it, but there was no way to tell.

            “How long has my brother been coming here?” Tadashi settled as he tried to sort through all of his thoughts.

            “Since the very beginning, he came here. Peeved off the wrong stall owner, that one, and ran in here to hide thinking it was abandoned.” Tadashi couldn’t help but roll his eyes. Yes, that sounded _exactly_ on how Hiro would act. “The little demon ran straight into a shelf of micro-chips. Spent a half an hour apologizing and cleaning up after that without me even having to ask.” _Yeah, that also sounds like Hiro_. Tadashi thought with a proud smile. Mr. D looked over with his wrinkled face. “He’s been back in here more times than I care to count. He’s always in need of some part, some directions, some advice, but never my old sage stuff. Nah, he just wants to know about his tech, claims he gets enough of the old sage stuff from his big brother.”

            “Glad to know I’ve been upgraded from ‘Nerd’ to ‘Old Sage.’” Tadashi rolled his eyes. However, as Hiro skidded out an aisle to run down another, he just loved the look on his brother’s face. It was so full of life in that moment.

            “He really appreciates ya, and I can see why.” Tadashi’s head spun around at the man’s words. “I got a policy here: you tell a good story, and I’ll give you a discount. That kid,” the man waved to where Hiro had disappeared, “always brings in stories about his latest inventions, especially when they involve you. I had some of my greatest laughs hearing about ‘The Misadventures of the Rocket-Powered Moochi” and the number of flight vehicles you two have crashed.” Tadashi winced in memory as the man continued to smile. “He really looks up to ya and speaks of no one else so highly.”

            Now _that_ was not what Tadashi was expecting. He was expecting to hear that what Hiro told everyone: Tadashi was a nerd, he went to nerd school, he was a killjoy, etcetera and etcetera. Instead, as a large smile crawled across his lips, he realized how much his brother really appreciated him.

            “Wow, thank you for telling me that.” Tadashi admitted as the old man smiled.

            “One day, that boy is going to regret not telling you enough.” Mr. D muttered as Tadashi’s head spun.

            “What was that?” Tadashi questioned, his smile slipping.

            “Millimeter wire is on the top shelf.” He noted in remembrance as someone, obviously Hiro, began to jump up and down consistently. There was some scraping of an attempt to climb, but worried mutterings and silent curses proved it futile. “You may want to go help him. Maybe find yourself something, too.”

            Tadashi shook his head as he got up, following his brother down the aisle. Sure enough, Hiro was making a fool of himself jumping up and down in an attempt to reach to the top shelf. “Let me help, bonehead.” Tadashi threw as Hiro tried to wave him off.

            “I got this.” He threw as he jumped once more. However, just as he was inches from the wire, he fell back, his foot catching his cape as he landed, causing the boy to tumble back and fall to his back. Tadashi winced as Hiro sat up, groaning as he rubbed his butt. “Ok, maybe I need help…”

            Tadashi laughed as he helped his brother up. The rest of the time, Tadashi helped Hiro get all of his things together and even grabbed a few of his own. He didn’t know _how_ the old man managed to get the gear for so dirt cheap because even the school, with all it’s bulk and student discounts, still charged at least twice as much – if not more – for the same items. In the end, Tadashi had bought the materials needed to make the super capacitor for Baymax that Hiro had suggested.

            At check out, Tadashi was asked to give a tale, and, knowing Hiro would have covered anything in his memory, Tadashi went a bit farther back, reminiscing of a time when Hiro was just one and Tadashi was six. It was one of the few memories Tadashi had from back before his parents had died, and he retold how Hiro had somehow escaped containment of his playpen while his Aunt was supposed to be watching him. Tadashi had come along an hour later to find Cass turning over the house in search, but Tadashi had found the baby within ten minutes, hugging his plush robot as he hid in Tadashi’s bed for a nap. He was so tiny that he had apparently blended in with the stuffed animals on the bed, and he’d been crafty enough to use a spare bin to climb up. Mr. D got a good laugh as Tadashi explained that Hiro was _born_ trouble, and the younger teen blushed red as he tried to defend that, no, he wasn’t that bad.

            Mr. D also added a small gift to Tadashi, something he gave to every first-time shopper to his store. It was a little charm with the Japanese symbols for “Loyal” engraved in it. Hiro pulled the charm he kept on a leather strap from under his shirt, this one saying “Brave.” On the backs were little carvings of flames of both, which Mr. D said represented the “Flames of Youth.”

            Hiro and Tadashi laughed, not knowing if he understood the reference or not. They only did because Fred had given Tadashi some old Manga from back in the day, which he had passed to Hiro when he had completed. After the two left, Hiro insisted on going to one of his favorite ramen bars on the road where a nice toad lady served them the best miso Tadashi had ever eaten. Getting out of the alley was surprisingly easy, as Tadashi found out, because you just had to travel to another wall that let you out right where the maze had begun. Tadashi tried to push back in, but all he hit was brick.

            _Magic._ He thought with a roll of his eyes before the two took off the cloaks, stuffing them away before heading back to the Lucky Café. It was nearing curfew for the two, and Hiro was going to have a lot of work ahead of him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if this chapter sounds like filler. I needed to set the scene a little because, if this still runs as I plan, it's going to be more important later that I set the scene now. However, now you know that the Underground is far more than just bot fights and demons. Plus, an OC! Cheers for me for destroying my no-OC policy!
> 
> Valete!


	5. Care

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hiro is pushing himself too much once again, and his body's not reacting too well to the lack of sleep. Tadashi is there for his brother, but it becomes apparent that there are other forces shifting in the shadows...

            “You are experiencing hormone fluctuations, mostly a lack of serotonin. You are sleep deprived and, for an adolescent, should be getting between eight and ten hours of sleep per night.” Baymax noted with a wave of his finger as Hiro punched away at the keyboard.

            The teen yawned in response. It had been two weeks already into the construction of the microbots, as he was tentatively calling them, and Hiro _had_ been pushing it on lack of sleep. It wasn’t his fault, though. He blamed his over-active brain that just kept pumping out ideas. Every time he considered slipping into sleep, he’s instantly think of something that would jolt him back to awareness, the need to write things down strong. Therefore, Hiro was now on hour twenty of continuous no-sleep while his total clocked hours of sleep in the last three days could be counted on his hands.

            It didn’t bug the little genius, though. No, Tadashi was the one concerned, so he’d brought Baymax home to convince Hiro to take a break. It was just the robot and teen in the lab as Tadashi was upstairs getting some last things done before the end of the semester.

            Hiro wouldn’t admit it, though, but the stress of the project was starting to weigh on his mind. The rules had changed slightly this year, and the applicants for the lab positions would need to present their works at an expo instead of individually. This would also be a chance for older students to renew grants, receive new ones, and possible investors to get their eyes on the next big thing. 

            Hiro covered his mouth as he glanced at the clock. _Midnight?!? When did it get so late…_ His tired mind was baffled as he looked at the screen. However, his eyes were drooping dangerously as his hands slid away from the keys. For once in a long time, Hiro was really losing the fight against slumber.

            “I’m fine…” He defended in a slur, but Baymax was not fooled.

            The stairs filled with fast footsteps. If Hiro had bothered to look back, he would have seen Tadashi in his PJs and sneakers coming down to check on his brother one last time before he went to bed. As it was, though, Hiro was so tired that he didn’t even take note of the noise. Instead, he was slipping from his chair as a soft, vinyl arm came up next to him. _Wow, this is soft…_ Hiro thought idly to himself as he snuggled closer.

            “Hey Bonehead, ready to finally turn…” Tadashi had begun before he reached the bottom. He came just as Hiro had fallen off his chair into Baymax’s waiting arm. Tadashi smiled, glad that he’d enhanced the bot’s reflexes. Had Hiro hit the ground, he probably would have shot awake and refused sleep for another few hours. As it was, Hiro was too lost to put up a fight.

            Tadashi walked over to the computer, saving the files before shutting it down. As he looked over, however, he did not expect Baymax to be running one of his fluffy hands over Hiro’s messy hair as he cradled the boy. “There, there.” Baymax muttered soothingly. Hiro snuggled in closer as Baymax activated his heater as well.

            Tadashi blinked, not quite processing the scene, before Baymax looked up. “Hiro seems to have fallen asleep though he has not yet cleaned for bed. Do you wish me to disturb him, Tadashi?” The robot inquired. “Bacteria on his teeth could lead to gum damage and tooth decay, especially with the elevated levels of sugar, noted as ‘gummy bears’ Hiro ingested two hours ago.”

            The elder teen shook his head as he turned his back. “Leave it to me, buddy. Just slip Hiro onto my back, then you can shut down for the night.” Tadashi noted to the bot. The charging station was currently in the corner of the lab, but Tadashi would move it to the bedroom later. Hiro was going to need all the space he could get once he started building his micro-bots.

            Gently, Baymax got up as he cradled Hiro. Shifting the boy away from the warmth source seemed to disturb him, but the deposit onto Tadashi’s back calmed the teen once more. Hiro snuggled into his brother’s shoulder, muttering something about “micro-bots” and “processors.”

            “I need to work, Dashi.” Hiro muttered as Tadashi moved towards the stairs. Tadashi nearly jumped, thinking he’d woken up, but a glance proved that the boy was still dead to the world.

            “Bonehead, don’t overwork yourself.” Tadashi commented with a caring smile. “We’re all proud of you already, even Aunt Cass and mom and dad.” Tadashi liked to think that, even with their parents long passed, that they were looking out for them.

Hiro muttered something else in response, but the meaning was totally lost on Tadashi. _He’ll think better with sleep._ Tadashi thought with a small smile before turning back to Baymax. “Thanks, buddy. I’m satisfied with my care, and I’m sure Hiro is the same.” Tadashi assured to the bot as Baymax nodded slightly. With that, Baymax toddled off to his charging station, deflating into the casing once arrived. Tadashi waited for the little light at the front to flash green – signifying that the bot was charging – before he hiked Hiro farther up on his shoulder. Hiro was getting heavier every time Tadashi turned around, the elder would swear. He wasn’t going to be too little for too much longer, but he would always be Tadashi’s little brother.

            Tadashi trekked up the stairs carefully, past the closed café and up to the main landing of the home. Aunt Cass had gone to bed hours ago considering she had to open the café at seven AM, and Moochi always slept in her room. Tadashi went further up the stairs to the converted attic space that he and Hiro shared as the teen snoozed away.

            There was a small bathroom hidden in the wall, which both boys had partially covered in posters so it wasn’t as obvious to people coming up. It was a little powder room, and the boys really didn’t use it for much except when they had to use the loo at night. Tadashi slipped Hiro off onto the toilet, the seat having been left closed for some reason, as he used a hand to steady Hiro. “Hey, bonehead, you gotta brush up before bed.” Tadashi nudged as the boy groaned.

            “Don’t want to, Nii-san…” Hiro muttered as his head lolled. Tadashi couldn’t help but smirk at the familiar title. He hadn’t heard it much often because Hiro thought he had outgrown the term, but he’d used it constantly when they were younger.

            Tadashi really should have let him be, but Baymax had said he’d eaten a lot of gummy bears before. When Hiro ate a lot, he ate _a lot_ , so he definitely needed to brush at the very least. Grabbing a toothbrush with his free hand, Tadashi wet it a little. The fluorine in the city water would do at the very minimum to clean Hiro’s teeth of the worst of the plaque.

            “Open wide, buddy.” Tadashi nudged as Hiro’s eye opened a tad before wincing at the light. He opened his mouth a little, exposing the diastima that the teen loved and refused to get closed.

            Tadashi carefully ran the brush over his brother’s teeth in little circles. Once satisfied, he rinsed the brush and left it at the sink. Instead of trying to carry Hiro on his back, he just scooped the kid up into his arms. While heavy, Hiro was still tiny as he snuggled closer to Tadashi’s chest for warmth. Tadashi just ended up dropping the kid into his bed. Hiro was, luckily, in sweats, so Tadashi didn’t have to coerce the kid out of his usual kaki pants and double-layered shirt. Tadashi pulled the comforter over Hiro’s lithe form before the boy flopped over, his mouth moving with some odd sounds before he hugged his pillow to his head.

            Tadashi flicked off the light in the bathroom before going to his own bed. He had his last exam mid-afternoon the next day, but it was for a class where he, literally, had to show up to get an A. He’d still studied, but it wasn’t a worry. Tadashi pulled the covers over his form as a yawn escaped his throat. _I guess the knucklehead rubbed off on me._ Tadashi thought before he let his eyes slide shut.

            But the night didn’t remain quiet.

            A few hours later, Tadashi was woken to the sounds of thrashing. Tearing an eye open, he looked to the noise only to see an empty bed, blankets on the floor thrashing around. Tadashi was suddenly awake as a yelp rang out. The elder jumped up, throwing off his covers as he ran for the pile. “Hiro, Hiro!” Tadashi kneeled down as he peeled away the blankets. They were wet with sweat, pulled so tightly that Tadashi wasn’t sure how Hiro was breathing. The whole cocoon was burning up when Tadashi pulled the last sheet free. Hiro swung out, nearly getting Tadashi in the nose, but the young man was quicker. He grabbed his brother’s arms as he yelled, louder now, “Hiro! WAKE UP!”

            Hiro cried as his eyes shot open. Tears rolled down his face as his breath came short. His whole body was covered in sweat, straight through his clothes, but it was his eyes that frightened Tadashi the most. His brown eyes were huge and filled with such worry. “Ta-Tadashi?” Hiro gasped as Tadashi finally let go of the younger’s arms.

            “Hiro, what happened?” Tadashi could guess a nightmare, but he hadn’t seen his brother react like that in a long time, not since they were very young.

            Hiro sat up slowly, rubbing away tears though he never took his eyes off Tadashi. “I-I had a nightmare. It was bad, I was so hot, and everything was so bright, and there was yelling, and… and…”

            Tadashi didn’t let his brother finish. He pulled the younger into his grasp as he kept his brother close. “Shh…” Tadashi soothed as he rubbed circles into his brother’s back. Hiro just kind of latched on instead of how he usually pushed people away. “Hey, hey, it’s over, ok? Probably all that stress from the application getting to you.” Tadashi noted as Hiro buried his head into Tadashi’s shoulder.

            Hiro shrugged. “It was… Maybe…”

            Tadashi leaned back as he gave Hiro a knowing grin. “Probably not enough sleep, too, ya bonehead. Your pushing yourself too hard, and the application isn’t due for another month and a half.

            Hiro rolled his eyes, his grin returning weakly. Eventually, Tadashi had gotten Hiro to the bathroom to change into some fresh PJs before tossing all the sweat-drenched sheets onto the younger’s bed. Tadashi found the pendant Hiro was so fond of pulled under the folds, so he placed it on Hiro’s desk when the boy came back out. However, Hiro had put it back on the next moment. Tadashi didn’t question it.

            “Come on, Hiro.” Tadashi noted as he nodded towards his bed.

            Hiro, now pulled together, shot Tadashi a look. “What? No, I’m fourteen. I’m not a baby.”

            Tadashi yawned in response, climbing back under his covers but leaving plenty of room. “Look, your sheets are soaked. We can wash them in the morning, but, in the meantime, just suck it up, bonehead. I got an exam tomorrow.” Tadashi turned away and let his eyes close.

            Tadashi waited patiently, but eventually the bed shifted as the cover ruffled. “We don’t tell anyone of this.” Hiro added as he turned his back to Tadashi. It was a few moments later that, in a small voice, Hiro whispered. “Sorry for waking you.”

            Tadashi grinned as he turned back over, eyes open now. “Hiro, don’t worry about it. We all have nightmares.” Tadashi threw a hand to ruffle his little brother’s hair.

            Hiro swatted at the hand before looking over his shoulder, tongue poked out. “Bug off, nerd. I thought you had an exam.”

            Tadashi fell onto his back as he closed his eyes. “Night, bonehead.”

            “Night Nerd.” Hiro threw before flopping back over. What Hiro didn’t know, though, was that Tadashi was awake, waiting until he heard his brother’s breathing even out.

            Tadashi was concerned as he turned over, setting a hand on Hiro’s shoulder. Tadashi was throwing a wild guess, but there was only one thing that matched Hiro’s description. The night their parents had died, there had been a huge fire. Their house was mostly destroyed, and somehow both Tadashi and Hiro had survived. Aunt Cass had picked them up and moved them to the city after that with the few things that had survived the inferno. Tadashi had the same nightmare when they first moved, but it had faded over the last decade.

            He wondered why Hiro was worrying about this now. Maybe he had been thinking of their parents? He would have been too young to remember them, but his brain was something that never ceased to surprise Tadashi. The elder hoped, though, that this was nothing.

            Hiro’s snoozing soon spread as Tadashi drifted off, worry settling into the back of his mind.

            It was a few quiet moments before a soft patter came up the stairs. The steps were soft, nearly silent, as a figure stood in the darkened doorway. It watched the two boys as their chests rose and fell. It watched as Hiro flopped over onto his other side, only for Tadashi’s gentle touch to become a protective hug. He watched until nearly dawn when he slipped back into the shadows, back to where he came.

* * *

 

            The man grinned as he sat in the car. It was a nice car with a driver and extended back seat. Luxury, just as he liked it. The man at the front rolled down the divider, looking back to the passenger. “Where to, sir?” The driver asked with the upmost respect.

            The man tapped his fingers together, one at a time as the flow traveled down his fingers. “I need time to regroup.” He advised as he flashed a grin. “Need to meet with a few associates. I have some unfinished business to attend to now that my schedule has freed up a bit.”

            The driver nodded. "We'll get going soon, then." The man in the back caught the smile filled with fangs of the driver. He rolled up the divider as he pulled down the boulevard away from where the man had first loaded as sharp eyes combed the road through tinted glass ahead, not that the man in the back cared. Yes, the driver was a true bloodsucker, but the car's passenger held no fear. No, he had far more on his mind as of recently.

            From the side seat, he pulled out a laptop with his correspondence messages. Luckily, earlier calls had made their ways to where they needed to me while the man had been in disposed. Information that he needed all laid out before him compounded with the necessary photos and information on the people within. Captures of a campus, students, teachers, and tech filled his vision as he smiled a bit dastardly. Along with the laptop was a piece of parchment, filling up next to the man in red ink as it detailed the latest locations of all the important people he needed. It even included all the details for a new and interest-worthy event coming up: the San Fransokyo Institute of Technology Showcase. He'd need to watch out for Hunters, though. It seemed that the militia was on the hunt for their next weapon.

            He would bide his time for now, take care as not to not reveal himself too early. He had to plan his next move one step at a time. He flicked the top closed as the car pulled away from the corner into the morning traffic. It headed down the streets of San Fransokyo as the man within looked out the widow with that same smile.

            The city would feel his grip soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Confused yet? Good. I TOTALLY meant to do that.
> 
> Hiro: She has no idea what she's doing.
> 
> Mak: Hiro, go work on your micro-bots!
> 
> Jokes aside, this is the last chapter before things really start to heat up. Already, we have mysterious movement in the shadows, and the boys have no idea what's in store. Just the way I like it :)
> 
> Also, heads up, my semester is getting a lot more hectic than I anticipated, so updates are probably going to be limited to weekends from here on out. Apologies in advance. Being a full time student and working eats up a TON of fan fiction time :( This one only got done when it did because I had it mostly done a week ago (it needed edits, though).
> 
> Valete!
> 
> EDIT: This might take a little longer to update as of now. I'm totally being swamped already, and this latest chapter is being a headache to write. I'm not giving up on this fic, but it might be a little longer to update.
> 
> Apologies to all who are waiting, but I'll try to give you guys something as soon as I can manage time to really sit down and write this demon of an AU! Valete!

**Author's Note:**

> This is my personal AU, otherwise known as the Oni!AU. In this AU, I'm going to be referencing a lot of science and magic. Be forewarned, I love good critical comments (not the "you suck" or "why is Moochi a bird she's a cat" stuff). Tell me what you think so I can improve as I go. Thanks all!


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